


Bittersweet

by Useless_Reptile



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Angst, Description of Vicchan's death, M/M, No ice skating, Veterinary Medicine, Yuuri is a vet, alternative universe
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-19
Updated: 2018-03-17
Packaged: 2018-10-07 21:11:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,198
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10369506
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Useless_Reptile/pseuds/Useless_Reptile
Summary: Yuuri couldn't have known that he would have to overstay his shift due to some unforseen circumstances. Those circumstances barged into his clinic and cried for help. Those circumstances had silver hair, blue eyes and a dying dog on their hands.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I've been writing this first chapter for so long that I've already forgotten how I got the idea of this au lol So, this is my first multi-chapter fic (the only one that got to be published at least) so I'm kinda freaked out about having to keep it updated regularly as I'm an inconsistent writer but I' promise to do my best. Plus English isn't my native language so if something reads weird, please, let me know. 
> 
> I hope you will enjoy it!
> 
> P.S. A huge shoutout to Floris_Oren and Thehobbem for beta reading this for me.

Yuuri sighed and rolled his shoulders. The shift was finally over and boy, was it a long one. He mended three broken legs today, performed two castrations, one sterilization, two ear crops for twin dobermans and even one amputation. The poor cat had got into a really bad fight, the limb was severely mutilated and was beyond treatment. Though it warmed Yuuri’s heart to see the owner unflinched by the prospect of having a handicapped pet and her eyes full of relief and glistening with tears when Yuuri announced that the surgery had gone well. For the time being, Sandy the cat was resting at the clinic and very soon was going to reunite with her human. 

The moments like this one were the highlights of Yuuri’s work. That’s when he understood why he loved his job so much and had chosen to become a vet in the first place. Smiling faces, tear-strewn cheeks, happy barking and purring and squeaking and loving hands stroking the fur so gently as if this animal was the most precious thing in the world - all of these were the best reward Yuuri could dream of having.

However, he couldn’t fool his sister, Mari, with sentimentalities. Of all the people she alone knew that his job choice hadn’t been driven by altruism or love for animals or whatever Yuuri cheerfully tried to pass for the truth. It was his redemption.

Everyone told him back then that it wasn’t his fault, that it was an accident and he could have done nothing to prevent it. Vicchan was just too young and careless, Yuuri - too slow, the car - too close. He shouldn’t have bought a retractable leash for a small pup, if it was a simple one Yuuri could have just yanked Vicchan out of the road. He tried to do that, but in vain, the leash just became longer, and Yuuri saw Vicchan run under the wheels and got hit. There he lied, a motionless lump of beige curls in a growing pool of blood, still connected to his owner by the leash. Yuuri was taking the sight in, his brain unable to process what had happened. The terrified driver ran to him, the guilt all over his face, his speech fast and stuttering, but Yuuri’s mind was barely registering his words. He was finally able to move and walked to the car, slowly and shakily. He knelt beside Vicchan, extended a hand and stroked his fur, trance-like. He wasn’t breathing. 

Yuuri ran a hand through his hair, chasing the memories away and looked at his watch. It was time to lock up and go home. The clinic was empty and quiet, as usual he was the one to stay the longest to deal with some paperwork and tidy up the place. He didn’t mind. After a frenzy of a work day some alone time was just what he needed, and he couldn’t really get it at home. 

Finally, Yuuri rose from his chair, stretched and reached for the hem of his scrubs shirt, hands criss-crossed, to pull it off, when he heard the front door slam open and someone cry: “Help!” 

In a flash Yuuri sprinted out of the office into the reception room to find there a silver-haired young man knelt on the floor, holding in his arms…

It took him several moments of dumbfounded stillness to realise the dog couldn’t be Vicchan. Though it looked just like him, it was way bigger. And it was bleeding all over the stranger’s shirt and pants and the floor boards.

The next second he was on his knees beside them. 

“What happened?”, Yuuri’s voice was low but firm as he lifted up the poodle’s upper lip pressing two fingers to the gum. It became paler as the capillaries were depressed and when Yuuri let go the blood returned to the vessels almost instantly. No shock yet, good. They had made it to the clinic on time. 

“She- we were walking across the road when that car-”, the man was stuttering obviously trying his best to fight off panic, “The green light was on but that car- I didn’t notice it and she jumped in front of me and- ”

Yuuri forbade himself to think about the striking coincidence and focus on the feelings it was invoking in him. He had a patient and needed to concentrate.

The dog was conscious and her side went up and down erratically as she breathed heavily, brown eyes open and searching for the face of her master. Apart from the gash on her side Yuuri’s trained eyes took in a broken front leg stuck out at an unnatural angle, and a wound on the head hence probable concussion. However, it wasn’t the external damage that he worried about. Internal bleeding was far nastier a prospect.

“Surgery room, now. Come on”.

He rose to his feet, all determination, helped the man up and led him outside the reception room. As they entered a dark surgery room, Yuuri flipped the switch on the wall. 

“Bring her over there”, he pointed at the metal operating table on the right of them.

He grabbed a stethoscope from the desk at the far wall and returned to the table. Carefully, he listened the dog’s heaving chest. There were distinct gurgling noises that shouldn't be there.

“This is bad, she has blood in her lungs. We must act quick”.

Yuuri put the stethoscope aside and cast a sideway glance to the man who was stroking the poodle, a pained look on his face. Well, he didn't have much choice here. Yuuri went to the closet at the wall and pulled out some spare scrubs which he shoved into the dog owner’s hands as he marched past him to the sink in the corner. 

“Put this on and wash your hands over there, you’re going to help me”.

“Wha- me??” the stranger’s blue eyes shot wide open, glistening from tears.

“I have to operate her now and I need an assistant’, Yuuri spoke up a bit over the water running from the tap as he soaped his hands and arms up to the elbows. “You're all I’ve got”.

He didn’t look at the other man once. Other people’s emotions written all over their faces, radiating from them, were a major distraction factor for Yuuri. Until he looked a person in the eye, it could all be manageable. He could still perceive the whole process as his job, not some personal responsibility before a pet’s owner. Being an empath surely made it all harder than it already was.

As he was done with the washing, Yuuri rushed to the rake with drawers at the bottom holding all the medical supplies. He rummaged through them taking out some syringes, an infusion bag, a catheter, some bandages, an electric shaver and two pairs of rubber gloves. He then returned to the table placing it all on a smaller one beside, plugged the shaver into the socket and shaved off some curls on the dogs uninjured front leg to reveal the veins. That being done, Yuuri put the gloves on, connected catheter to the bag and then expertly inserted the needle into the dog’s blood vessel fixing it with some band-aids. As the owner finally came up to the table, Yuuri handed the bag to him.

“Pump it in, the fluids will stabilize her and prevent from going into shock”, as he said that Yuuri uncapped one of the syringes and gave the dog a shot. It was all done in a flash, and the other man couldn’t help but admire the doctor’s skills despite the gravity of the situation. He began doing what he was told.

As the dog became stable, Yuuri got her to the adjacent room for x-ray and asked the client to wait in the surgery room. Those few minutes of being shut out of everything were excruciating, but soon the doctor emerged from the room pushing the wheel-table with the dog in front of him and holding some radiographs which he then stuck onto a light board on the wall.

“Her rib is broken and has punctured the lung, hence the blood”, Yuuri explained hurriedly pointing at the picture. “She also has one broken leg and the other fractured but that can be mended later”.

He rushed to the rack with supplies and got hold of another syringe. Yuuri carefully made a shot to the already shaved spot on the front leg.

“It’s okay, girl- What’s her name?”, he asked, head slightly turning to the other man’s direction, eyes still on the dog.

 

“Makkachin”.

“It’s okay, Makkachin’, Yuuri repeated, voice soft and soothing, nothing like his stern professional tone a few minutes before, as he was stroking the dog’s forehead just above the eye with his thumb. “Just go to sleep, it’ll all be fine when you wake up, I promise”.

The silver-haired man felt his heart squeeze and a new wave of tears coming.

While Makkachin was slowly giving in to the anesthesia, her breath becoming more shallow, Yuuri managed to put a tube into her mouth to provide her with oxygen. When this was done, he shaved the fur off the dog’s chest, took a scalpel and made an incision. The owner cringed involuntarily as he watched the blade cut into skin. As the incision was big enough, he switched the scalpel to a pair of retractors and hooked the skin edges with them keeping the incision open.

“I need you to hold these”, he said. 

The other man swallowed.

“I- I don’t really think I can-”.

“You will do fine, come here”, Yuuri interrupted, and somehow the man couldn’t resist his words and came closer. “Just hold them tight while I‘m fixing her rib and lung”, their gloved hands brushed as Yuuri handed him the metal hooks. “Yeah, just like that. Okay, here we go”.

****

A few hours later, after the needle finally had clanked into a metal bowl joining other blood-stained instruments, after all the minor wounds had been cleaned out and stitched, after the splints had been put onto injured legs, after Makkachin vitals had become stable and she had been placed into a cage to spend the night - only after that the two men allowed themselves to breathe out. 

The silver-haired man was sitting on the couch in the reception room, head resting against the wall and eyes shut. Yuuri had had to put certain efforts into convincing him to leave Makkachin to rest and lead him away from the cage. He remembered feeling his hands tremble as he took the retractors from him before stitching Makkachin up. The man was almost under as much stress as the dog herself. He was so afraid of losing her. Yuuri didn’t need to look very hard to see that she meant the world to him and probably was the only creature he truly cared for. Where did that come from? How could he know that? Was one glance into those impossibly blue eyes enough to understand the man? Maybe not, but it sure was enough to see loneliness in them. 

Yuuri came up to him holding two steaming mugs and couldn’t keep himself from marvelling at the other man. It seemed to be the first time for the night that he got to properly look at him. He was tall and lithe and effortlessly graceful, even when exhausted from the frenzy of past hours. Strands of beautifully coloured hair fell to his chiselled face, not spoiled a bit by a little furrow between the brows and shadows under eyes. Yuuri wondered if his earlier judgement about him was right: how could possibly someone that good-looking ever be lonely? 

“Um…”, Yuuri hated to disturb the resting client but the blue eyes shot open immediately and looked up at him. “I, uh, brought you some coffee”.

A smile, a bit weary but radiant nonetheless, lit up the man’s face.

“That’s awfully kind of you, thank you”, he said accepting the mug and moving on the couch to make room. There was no way Yuuri could ignore that without being rude so he sat down, eyes glued to his own mug on his lap and a lump in his throat. Damn it, he was a professional, wasn’t he? That was his clinic and he was in charge so why was he feeling so self-conscious all of a sudden? The answer hummed softly at the first sip of coffee and beamed at him.

“Funny, you’ve just saved my dog’s life, and I still don’t know your name. I’m Viktor by the way”, he extended a hand which Yuuri shook after a little pause which he hoped wasn’t long enough to seem weird. 

“Katsuki Yuuri. I- I mean…”, he stuttered realising that must have sounded too formal, “...just Yuuri”.

“Nice to meet you, Yuuri”, Viktor’s smile broadened, “and I don’t know where to start thanking you for saving Makkachin. I am terribly sorry I got you working so late but I was just so terrified and….”.

“No, no way you are saying sorry for that”, Yuuri shook his head, eyes still on the mug in his hands. “Working odd hours is a part of my job”. 

“Right…”, Viktor cast a curious glance over his stooped figure. “Still I would like to do something for you, apart from paying for your work, of course”.

“You don’t have to”.

“But I want to. Please, let me”.

Yuuri stiffened as he felt a hand on his forearm, his eyes shooting down to it for a second, then up to Viktor. He looked completely unperturbed, as if grabbing the hands of people he barely knew was the most natural thing for him. Then again, it probably was. Even through the veil of exhaustion of the past hours Yuuri could see how vibrant and lively the other man was, how full of emotions ready to go over the brim. That hand thing was probably just done on an unstrained impulse. As a Japanese, Yuuri respected personal space - others’ and his own - but somehow he found himself not minding that nonchalant gesture much. 

“Uh, let’s get back to it later”, he rendered his arm free in what he hoped looked like a natural and inadvertent way. “It’s late, you should probably go home now”. 

“Trying to get rid of me?” Viktor shot him a sideways glance over the rim of the mug before taking a sip of coffee.

“Not at all. Today’s been a lot of stress for you, you should rest. Doctor’s prescription. Let me call you a taxi”.

“No need, I live nearby”. Was Yuuri imagining that or did Viktor sound somewhat disappointed? “When can I take Makkachin home?”.

“I’ll be checking up on her for the next several hours, but I think tomorrow she’ll be good to go. You’ll have to take good care of her until she’s fully recovered, I’ll write out all the instructions for you”.

“Aren’t you going home?”

“No, I’ll stay overnight. She can’t be left alone right after the surgery”.

There was a pause. Yuuri was aware of the blue eyes scrutinizing him but couldn’t bring himself to meet the gaze.

“And you expect me to go home while you’re staying?” Viktor finally said, dangerously cheerfully.

“Well, yes, that’s what my clients’ owners are supposed to do: go home and let me do my job”.

That sounded less harsh in Yuuri’s head, but the words couldn’t be taken back. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed the slightest shift in Viktor’s posture and could almost feel him tense.

“Now you apparently want to make me feel even worse for depriving you of sleep”, the voice was now bearing a tang of ice.

“No, that wasn’t- Look”, Yuuri pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a small half-tired, half-exasperated sigh, “what’s your point?”

“My point is”, Viktor put one of his long slender legs over the other, “I’m staying. Keeping you company is the least I can do to pay you back”.

“God, the arrogance of him”, Yuuri thought but didn’t say, his Japanese reserve keeping all rude thoughts on a leash.

“I told you, you don’t owe me anything apart from the treatment charges”.

“Please, let me decide how far to extend my gratitude”, the silver fringe is flipped to the side as the man takes another sip of coffee. “Besides, I don’t want to leave her here after she saved my life, she’d feel betrayed”.

Yuuri cast an unimpressed look over him, his eyebrow raised.

“She can’t know you’re here, you know. She’s asleep”.

“She can feel it!”, Viktor turned to him abruptly and clutched his chest dramatically over where the heart is located. “We have a very special connection!”

Yuuri blinked at him not sure if the other man was for real, but all the same couldn’t help but crack a smile. How can anyone be so insufferable and dorky at the same time and go from one to the other in, like, five seconds? 

“Yeah, of course, you do”.

Victor went still for a second, watching the vet’s expression closely, a hand still against the chest, and reflected his grin. 

“Sorry if I sounded like a jerk. I guess that’s the stress talking, usually I’m a sweetheart”, he grinned again as Yuuri not so discreetly rolled his eyes. “I would really like to spend the night beside her, but I understand that’s not allowed, so I think I’ll be heading home now. Thanks for the coffee”, he motioned at him with the mug before setting it aside on a small table and standing up, his hand extended to the doctor. “And for everything else”.

Yuuri stared at the hand, then up at Viktor’s face and felt his throat tighten. A stylish fringe, now a bit messy, was casting an intimate shadow over the man’s face, a corner of the mouth curved in a little tired smile, and those ocean-blue eyes, half hidden under long silver lashes, were looking at him with oh, such impossible softness, that Yuuri was clueless what he had ever done to deserve it. He was so entranced with the view that nearly forgot about the waiting hand in front of him but managed to slid his hand into Viktor’s palm and give it a light squeeze.

Before Yuuri could break the spell and get to his feet, Viktor was already at the reception counter next to the entrance scribbling on a piece of paper.

“That’s my number. Please, don’t hesitate to call me if anything-”, he trailed off, “if you need me. Any time”.

“Don’t worry, she’ll be fine”, Yuuri stepped closer and leaned against the counter. “I’ll call you tomorrow when she’s ready to go home”.

“Thank you”, Viktor smiled, holding his gaze on Yuuri for a moment and then turned to the door.

“You... wanna go say goodbye?”, Yuuri really didn’t know why it felt so important to not let that man go just yet.

The platinum head spun around sending long tresses of hair flying around, and the blue eyes gleamed at him.

“Can I?”

***

As good as Yuuri has become in not letting emotions out at work, he felt his eyes sting as he watched Viktor crouched beside Makkachin’s open cage and stroking her gently, saying cute nothings to her in a soft voice, like how brave she was and how she would be back at home in no time. The dog hadn’t quite recovered from anesthesia and was still, only the slits of her open eyes indicating she was awake. 

“You can leave something with her”, Yuuri said as he came closer and knelt near the cage meeting Viktor’s confused eyes. “Something that has your smell on it. That will comfort her”.

“Oh, uh…”, Viktor glanced over himself searching for a suitable item. He reached for the pockets of his jacket and pulled out a thin narrow scarf from one of them which he stuffed in there before changing into the scrubs. “Will that do?” 

“Yeah, that’s perfect”, Yuuri approved with the nod of the head. “Though you might get it back chewed and covered in slobber, mind that”.

Viktor chuckled as he carefully placed the scarf in front of Makkachin.

“As long as she feels better, it doesn’t matter”.

“She will”. Yuuri felt like his words weren’t enough and he needed to provide some physical support, as in a reassuring hand on the shoulder, but was outraged by the very thought of invading Viktor’s personal space. So his hand twitched but stayed where it was, like a dog rushing to jump on her owner’s friend but tugged back roughly and scolded for not behaving itself. “She’ll be back on her feet sooner than you think”.

“I know”, after the final pat on Makkachin’s head Viktor closed the cage carefully and smiled at Yuuri. “How can she not when she’s in such good hands?”

Yuuri was almost sure his ears were steaming. It’s not like he doesn’t receive praise from people now and then, his clients’ owners tend to get emotional when they see their pets alive and kicking again, so quite often Yuuri finds himself standing in front of them, averting his gaze shyly while being showered with all the “your hands are gold” and “you are a miracle worker”, etc., etc. Though Yuuri understood that was going from the bottom of their hearts, handling all this exalted gratitude wasn’t particularly comfortable. He just didn’t know how to. How to stand, where to look, what to say, what to do with his hands, the hands that could save lives but couldn’t just stay naturally at the sides of his body when Yuuri was being given undivided attention. 

This time, on top of everything, his stomach was doing some weird acrobatic stunts and the heart was pumping blood overenthusiastically causing his cheeks to flush. At the edge of his mind Yuuri understood it had nothing to do with the praise. It had everything to do with the blue eyes, the gentle smile and the soft voice. 

He led Victor back into the reception room where they finally wished each other good night and parted. As Yuuri locked the front glass door watching the other man cross the road and stroll down the street, he felt a thing. It was the same thing that children feel as they go to bed on Christmas Eve and try their best to fall asleep as fast as they can: excitement for what the following day would bring. What does the trick is that you know exactly what it will be - something you crave for so much that you even behaved yourself for the whole year, brushed your teeth every day and ate all your vegetables. Yuuri didn’t know what he had ever done to deserve such a gift.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, look at this. I finished the second chapter lol I was sort of out of all the fic writing stuff lately since I had moved to the US in September, but a few days ago I reread this stuff and decided it was worth continuing (even though I've no idea where I'm heading with all this). So here we go. Hope it's fun to read.
> 
> P.S. I believe making a new friend who's as crazy about YOI as I am and ready to read what I write was also a motivation factor, so shoutout to her ~<3

The morning greeted Viktor with the dim sunlight peeking through the curtains shyly as he was thrown out of the sleep by a nightmare in which he lost Makkachin. He sat in the bed, his heartbeat rushed, body sticky with sweat, and hurriedly looked around, panicking eyes searching for his pet. Then the events of the past night slowly crawled into his mental view. Makkachin wasn’t dead, she was safe and sound at the vet clinic under that handsome doctor’s care. Wait, handsome? Where did that come from? Viktor flopped back onto the pillow and bit his lip trying to suppress a smirk. Now, that was alarming.

He reached for his phone on the nightstand and checked the time. 4:20 am. Twenty minutes to his alarm. There was no point going back to sleep so he threw the sheet off of himself, got up and headed to the bathroom doing some stretching on his way. His head felt heavy and a bit feverish, all the stress from yesterday and the reduced sleep hours showing. Still he wasn’t going to complain. He could live through the day in a sleep-deprived state just fine, especially knowing that he would be rejoining with Makkachin by the end of it. With Makkachin and Yuuri.

Alright, alright, he might be slightly attracted to the man, no point denying that. Though, who on earth being in possession of two eyes (even one eye) wouldn’t be? Yuuri was radiating soft warm beauty that made it difficult to take eyes off of him, made you want to stay close to the man and bask in that warmth. On the other hand, there was the way he did his work. Professionalism, cool like the metal of surgical instruments, was on the tips of his fingers, in the set of his jaw and in his eyes, glistening through the glasses. Determination and confidence were emanating from him from the first moments Viktor saw him till the end of the surgery. The contrast took Viktor’s breath away. So what that he wanted to feel this excitement again? He is but a weak man used to indulge himself. A lot.

As he was done with the shower, breakfast (little extra time allowed him to cook an actual omelette, not sandwiches), all dressed and groomed and ready for the day, he left the apartment. As he was starting his car, he caught a glimpse of himself in the rear-view mirror, his own blue eyes staring at him. Those were the same ones he had for 31 years, however, today they looked different. He couldn’t remember when was the last time he could see - feel - his smile crawl into his eyes. 

****

The night went by peacefully. Makkachin was stable and slept for most of the time. As Yuuri came to check on her for the first time, half an hour after he had seen Viktor off, his chest clenched at the sight of the dog snuggling with her owner’s scarf. The moments she was awake he gave her some water, and then at dawn she tried to stand up, obviously considering herself fully recovered and ready to go find her human, but Yuuri managed to change her mind on immediate departure with a bowl of some dry dog food. 

He was sitting there, on the floor beside the open cage, one leg bent, elbow resting against the upward knee, and watching her chomp happily on the treat, when Mari found him. He didn’t hear her unlock the back door and enter, but caught her footsteps as she walked towards the room he was in. He was aware of her lingering on the threshold and watching him. She came closer softly and carefully ruffled her brothers hair. 

“You should’ve called me sooner”.

“There was no time. Thanks for coming and sorry for pulling you out of bed”.

“You operated her alone?”

“Yeah. The owner helped me a bit, though”.

“Poor man, he must have been terrified enough without you exposing him to the unsavory sight and making him participate on top of that. Yeesh, bro, you are hideous”.

Yuuri chuckled and leaned back resting his back against Mari’s leg.

“Are you alright?”

“Exhausted, but yeah, fine”.

“You know what I meant”.

There was a pause. 

“For a second there I thought it was him. Can you imagine? Four years of medical school, internship and three years of private practice, a cool-headed professional, and I still believed I saw a ghost”, he ran a hand across his face, brushing through the dark bangs falling down to the forehead. “That’s just getting ridiculous”.

“Yuuri, you need to let go. It’s been, what, 14 years? You can’t carry that guilt through your whole life”.

“I know. When I don’t feel it anymore, you’ll be the first to know”.

That’s it, a fraternal variant of “piss off”. Point taken.

Mari sighed and rested both of her hands on Yuuri’s shoulders bending forward and looking into his face upside down.

“You’re an idiot, lil’ brother”.

“That I know too”.

“Oh, good then. I thought I kinda needed to break this to you. Now, come on”, she nudged him slightly with her knee, “get up and go home, I’ll take it from here”.

She stretched a hand to him which Yuuri took with a smile as he looked up to his sister.

“Thanks, onee-chan”.

“You owe me one, mind”.

She helped him up and bustled him out of the room and eventually out of the building. 

Cool morning air felt nice and refreshing after a sleepless night. As he walked to the closest station, Yuuri enjoyed the emptiness and the quiet of the streets, breathed in transparent air untarnished by exhaust fumes yet, and relished a tender orange tint on the light-blue sky. The dawn was promising a beautiful morning, a shame Yuuri would probably sleep through the most of it. 

***

Viktor had been hypnotizing his phone with a glance for about ten minutes now. It wasn’t taking a hint and didn’t show any signs of life. Why there was still no call from handsome Yuuri? It was already noon after all! Viktor sighed and propped his chin on the arms folded on the table in front of the device, a pout on his face. Suddenly, something that felt like a folder flopped on his head.

“Oi, you gonna work or be daydreaming the whole day like a fucking Disney princess?”.

Viktor sighed even more prominently. 

“If that’ll help me to meet my prince, then yes”, he muttered.

“What was that?” 

“Nothing”, Viktor straightened up at last and snatched the phone into the pocket. “Also mind your language, Yura, your mouth is way too dirty for your pretty face”.

“Did you just call me pretty, you fucking moron??!!”

The blond boy had a full intent on smacking Viktor with a folder big time this time but his hand was intercepted in the air.

“Young Plisetsky, my feisty friend”, the newcomer purred above the boy’s ear rolling the “r”, “would you be so kind as to take your ass over to the kitchen and get yourself busy?”

“Let go, you pervert”, Yuri grumbled as he broke out of the grip. “Alright, I will, you deal with this idiot yourself”.

At that the blond left the two older men and stormed out of the room.

“Something’s on your mind, mon ami?” the man leant on the desk resting palms against the edge of it and casting his glance down, on the top of Viktor’s hair. “Or rather someone?” 

“Observant as always, Christophe”, the other man mumbled into his sleeve looking at the Swiss out of the corner of his eyes.

“Care sharing?”

“You know I do”.

***

“So he saved your dog and now you’re so eager to thank him for that. You know you’re hopeless, don’t you?”

“No, Christophe, you don’t understand, he’s so…

“Dreamy? Otherwordly? Breathtakingly gorgeous? Viktor, believe me, being your friend for over 10 years I know all of the overly elaborate epithets you tend to use when you think you’re in love”.

“I was going to say enigmatic. Intriguing. He was kinda closed off, like he was trying to keep me at the arm length, but I’m sure I saw something pass between us. There is something inside him that he doesn’t let out. You should’ve seen his eyes while he was working - set, determined, I bet he could’ve make the wound patch up on itself with that intense gaze of his, and it wouldn’t dare to disobey”, Viktor sighed deeply, partially out of all the emotions swirling inside of him, partially because he really needed to breathe after such a long ardent speech. “I couldn’t look away from him”, he added more quietly.

Christophe whistled averting his eyes from his friend and staring at the opposite wall contemplatively.

“So you’re truly in deep this time, huh?”

“I’m not- This is not like that!”, Viktor sat back in his chair positively affronted.

“Yes, it is”. 

“He’s just intriguing and I kinda want to know him better, that’s all”.

“Remind me when was the last time you found someone intriguing or wanted to get to know them before or after bedding them?”

“Oh, now I’m a slut, huh? Thanks, friend”.

“That’s not what I meant. More like you don’t trust people to go further than your bed. None of them has got you interested so far to the point where you would even consider letting them into your world. Now”, Christophe made a meaningful, almos theatrical pause, “you are ready to open up without even considering it”.

There was a bit of silence when Viktor slowly let the information wash over him and suck in. 

“Now, when you actually spell it to me, it sounds terrifying”, he chuckled weakly running a hand through his hair.

“I know”, Viktor felt a hand on his shoulder and was grateful to have Christophe. “Even if it’s not romantic, still this is kinda a big step forward for you. As much as I’m honoured to be your friend, I can’t be the only one you will bother till the end of your days”.

“I suppose not”.

A pensive comfortable silence fell upon the two of them for a few moment broken only by the sounds of the younger employees’ distant bickering.

“So, what are you going to do then?”

Before Viktor could think of an answer, there was a loud buzz that reverberated from the table surface. His head shot to the sound: absorbed in the conversation, he had completely forgotten about his phone and the call he was so eager to get. Viktor swiftly snatched the phone from the table and as his eyes set on the screen, a grin lighted up his face.

“I guess I’m gonna go fetch my dog”.

***

The clinic looked somehow different at the daytime. Busier. Even before opening the glass doors Viktor noticed two visitors sitting on the couch where he and Yuuri shared coffee yesterday. One of them, a woman, was holding a carrier in her lap, the other, a twenty-something girl, was petting a gorgeous German shepherd lying at her feet. Then a tall dark-haired young man in doctor’s attire appeared, an elderly woman with a ginger cat in her arms walking beside him and chatting with him animatedly. He smiled at her softly and waved his hand as he walked out and brushed past Viktor cooing at the cat affectionately. Viktor noticed that the cat had only three legs. The woman didn’t seem to notice that at all.

As he entered the premises, Viktor was greeted by a pleasant-looking, slightly plum Japanese woman behind the reception counter who he figured to be somehow related to Yuuri. Her accent was heavier though, a slightly weird intonation, alien to English, entwining her words. 

“Hello. How can I help you, sir?”

“Hello”, Viktor beamed at her. “I’m here to get my dog, I’ve got a call today from Yuuri- I mean Dr. Katsuki”.

“Oh, you must be Viktor-san”, the woman clapped hands in realisation. “Yuuri said you’d come”.

“He spoke about me??” Viktor fought the urge to clutch his chest.

“Well, of course!”, the receptionist smiled radiantly and Viktor couldn’t help but mirror her expression. “Since you haven’t filled the registering papers, you’re not in our database, so he warned me that you would come for that lovely poodle girl”. 

“Oh”, Viktor’s face fell. “Right”. 

“If you could just do it now, that would be excellent, and I’ll let Yuuri know you are here”.

“Sure”.

He took the papers and the pen she handed to him and proceeded to the couch, taking the spot previously occupied by the girl with a dog. He quickly scanned through the boxes on the paper: the owner’s name and contacts, the pet’s name, breed, age, date of birth, previous medical history, etc. The second sheet was the treatment procedures performed and their individual costs as well as the total sum at the bottom which he barely acknowledged before signing the document. 

Just as he finished filling the form in, he heard slow footsteps coming closer and looked up. There was Yuuri, walking towards him with a small smile, leading Makkachin on the leash. The poodle had her two legs fixed in splints and a large bondage across her abdomen. She barked loudly and made an attempt to speed up as she saw Viktor, but Yuuri readjusted his grip on the leash lowering the hand closer to the collar and hold Makkachin in place bending down to pet her reassuringly and coo something in Japanese. Viktor felt his heart rocket to his throat. The next moment he was on his knees in the middle of the hall, arms flung around Makkachin who was trying to turn her head the way that would provide the most of Viktor to be licked. 

“Hey, devochka, you’re alright”, the Russian pulled away to look at the dog properly, hands ruffling the fur on her neck, cautious to avoid bondages. Yuuri’s breath hitched at how affectionate Viktor looked right now. There was so much kindness and genuine happiness in his eyes, and when they crossed with Yuuri’s for the brief moment, he felt a warm wave wash over him and set his heart racing. He nearly jumped away when Viktor suddenly rose to his full height beside him, his face alight.

“Where can I start to thank you”.

“You’re very kind, but I just did my job”. Before Viktor could put in any objection he added hurriedly: “I’ll write you a detailed prescriptions on how to treat her at home for the next few months and while I’m at it you can settle all the payment stuff with my mom- I-I mean- Mrs. Katsuki, over there”.

Yuuri looked away sheepishly, a blush tinting his cheeks. How adorable can this man get?

“Oh, so you’re Yuuri’s mother!” he exclaimed beaming down at the lady in question who just sidled with them. She chuckled.

“Yes, this young man here happens to be my son”.

“Then I must thank you as well for bringing him into this world for he could save my dog!”, he seized her hands and gave her a watery excited look as she laughed and chirped her “not at all”s, flustered, her accent becoming slightly thicker.

Yuuri let out a long-suffering sigh watching the duo in front of him, then produced a notebook and a pen from his pocket and moved back to his office while Viktor was being led to the reception counter by his mother.

When he re-emerged into the hall, he took in Viktor sitting on the couch, bent over to pet Makkachin standing between his legs and cooing at her in… what language was it? It wasn’t like Yuuri hadn’t noticed the man’s accent but he didn’t really give much thought to his nationality. Viktor is an international name, and he didn’t even know his last name so there were no clues to it.

As he stepped closer, Viktor turned his head to him and straightened up.

“Here”, Yuuri handed him a piece of paper covered in his neat scribbles. “I’ve written out all the care instructions for you. Basically, don’t let her overexert herself. You should shorten the time for walks and give up active games for a time being. Also she might be in pain for the first few days, so I’ve listed the necessary medications to give to her if she, you know, starts whimpering or refuses to move or eat. Well, it’s all in here”, he cut off clumsily.

“Thank you again, I’ll make sure she gets the best care”.

“Yeah, good. Oh, I almost forgot”, he slipped a hand into his coat pocket and took out Viktor’s crumpled scarf. “It really did comfort her through the night, though I’m afraid you won’t be able to wear it anymore”.

Viktor laughed extending his hand for the piece of cloth.

“Oh well, I was thinking about buying a new one anyway”.

As he took the garment from the doctor’s hand, their fingers brushed, not separated by the rubber of a glove now, and Yuuri felt what he thought people on an electric chair probably feel. He pulled away - oh god, was it too fast and obvious? - almost able to sense his cheeks turning rosey. Luckily, Viktor didn’t seem to notice, as he turned away to pick something up from the couch.

“I know you told me - very explicitly - that you won’t accept anything over the treatment cost, but I just couldn’t help myself. It’s really not much, just a token of my gratitude”.

“You absolutely shouldn’t have-”.  
Yuuri froze as his eyes focused on a paper bag Viktor was holding. Intricate golden letters were embossed on the cream-coloured background, and they said….

“Is that from Nikiforov’s??”, he blurted out before his brain could even make an attempt to stop his tongue. 

There was a bit of silence during which Viktor blinked and Yuuri wished to be engulfed by the flames of hell right there if that meant he would escape the awkward situation. To his surprise, Viktor beamed at him seemingly as enthusiastic about the brand in question as Yuuri himself.

“Yes! Have you heard about them?”

“Heard ab- Are you kidding? The whole country knows them, they are the best confectionaries in the USA!”. The ardor in his tone faded just as fast as it had appeared, to Viktor’s slight disappointment, and Yuuri uttered the next sentence in a small voice, eyes casted sideways. “My favourite too”.

“Really now?”, Viktor’s smile and the glint in his eyes were undecipherable. “Then I’ve hit a bull’s eye here, I think. I’m glad”, he said as he extended the hand with the bag to Yuuri. The other man looked down at it hesitantly and then shook his head.

“N-no, I can’t accept them. Thank you”, he bowed slightly, “but this is a very expensive gift”.

“Yuuuuri”, there was a half-hearted whine in Viktor’s voice, “with all due respect, don’t be silly. It’s nothing compared to my dog’s life, just a trifle really. Besides, you don’t expect me to let you turn it down now that I know they’re your favourite, do you?”

He marvelled at the sight of a gentle blush blossoming on the doctor’s cheeks. 

“S-so I don’t really have a choice, do I?”, he asked a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth as he looked up to Viktor. The taller man beamed.

“Nope, you don’t”. 

Yuuri chuckled.

“Alright then”, he steadied himself when their fingers touched again as Viktor passed the bag to him. “Thanks again”. 

“You’re welcome”.

Yuuri was pretty sure that smile could melt snow on the top of Fudji.

“Well, then I guess we’ll be going now, right, Makka?”

The poodle barked affirmatively and licked her owner’s palm. Yuuri was watching them feeling something inside him squeeze. It was like the two of them were radiating light, warm and welcoming, and Yuuri found himself drawn to it, like a lost traveller to a bonfire in the woods that was promising comfort and safety. 

“Actually…”, he started without even registering, “do you have time?” He averted his eyes as soon as Viktor looked up waiting expectantly for the continuation. “As much as I would love to lock myself in my office and eat all of this myself, I thought if maybe... you cared for some tea?”, he trailed off with a rising intonation, lifting his eyes up to Viktor with a shy bat of long jet black eyelashes.

If he was aware of what he was doing, he was so masterful at flirting Viktor himself might want to take a couple of lessons from him; if he wasn’t, then he was the purest, most innocent and cute thing in this world. Either way, Viktor was hooked.

He smiled softly at Yuuri.

“I do have time”.

***  
“I can’t believe my eyes”, Yuuri whispered reverently taking in the contents of the bag now laid out on the table in front of him. He still hadn’t opened an elegantly decorated box, as if not daring lay his hands on it. On the right of him there was a tray with a teapot and two cups on it. Opposite of him Viktor was sitting, elbows on the table, fingers laced under his chin and smile on his face.

“I would’ve never thought you were such a sweet tooth, Yuuri”.

“Uh, y-yeah… I mean- It’s not just that. Nikiforov’s are no usual confectioneries, it’s, like, a whole new level. Art. Each chocolate made there is a masterpiece. Catharsis. Each tells a story. That’s what always amazed me, ever since I first tried their sweets. They use chocolate to convey emotions. I think it’s beautiful”.

“Wow…”, Viktor rested his cheek on the hand, half-lidded eyes fixed on a blushing man who seemed to be bewitched. “You sure are a connoisseur”.

“That’s just my impression”, he answered smiling sheepishly, eyes darting to Viktor for a second and then back to the box as he opened it. Viktor watched his eyes widen as he took in the contents. Inside, eight chocolates were sitting in two rows, two of each kind, all of them looking flawless. Yuuri’s gaze slid along the sweets and almost instantly fixed on two of them. He gasped and seemed to hold his breath.

“Oh... This is-”

He carefully picked up a chocolate with flakes of actual gold sprinkled on top of it. 

“-Stammi Vicino”, he breathed out quietly marvelling at the perfect cube of chocolate between his fingers.

The chocolate wasn’t very big so he popped the whole of it into his mouth and closed his eyes. It was sweet on the tongue, the perfect rich taste of excellent milk chocolate. ...And then he bit it open, and the filling spilled out and stroke all the senses flooding the mouth with bitterness. The dark chocolate had such a high percentage of cocoa that it wasn’t even sweet. Like, at all. 

Viktor’s pupils were blown wider as he watched Yuuri close his eyes, lashes fluttering, his jaws moving slowly as he was savouring the taste and texture. 

“So what kind of story does it tell you?”

“Of loneliness”, Yuuri answered, not touching his tea cup so that the taste wouldn’t be washed away. “Of longing for something that’s out of reach. Wrecked soul and emptiness behind a polished facade”.

“Exactly”, Viktor didn’t say. 

“Is that so?”, he murmured instead eyeing the man opposite him carefully, fingers interlaced under his chin.

“Yeah.”

“Sounds like you know exactly what you’re talking about, doc”, Viktor said sitting back in his chair.

Yuuri blinked, and then, to Viktor’s delight, a timid smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

“Don’t call me that.”

“Why not?” the mirth bordering with mischief was sparkling under silver lashes.

 

“It’s…”, Yuuri couldn’t think of a good enough reason why Viktor shouldn’t call him that, plus the blue eyes that caught his were definitely not helping to concentrate. “I don’t know. Doesn’t sound right for me, I guess. I feel like I’m not old enough yet to be called “doc”.”

“Fair enough”, Viktor laughed. 

He let the unanswered question slip, after all it was mostly rhetorical: Viktor already knew that the chocolate alone could not convey the emotion if you hadn’t felt it at some point. The way Yuuri put it into words there could be no doubt that he found the misery of his own reflected in the sweet.

“So what is it that’s out of your reach, Yuuri?”

Yuuri looked up at him quickly, bewildered, then looked away wistfully, as if caught at something and reluctant to try denying anything. Before he could answer, he felt something warm and wet against his skin. He looked down to find Makkachin, who had abandoned her spot in the corner, licking his hand that was resting on his thigh.

“Hey, what are you doing, girl? You should be resting”, he said as he put his palm on top of her head and started stroking the sweet spot above her eyes with a thumb. Even though he was smiling and his eyes were gleaming softly, it didn’t slip from Viktor’s attention that the smile wasn’t a happy one. It was like Makkachin sensed his sadness and wanted to console the man who saved her life. 

“You should probably take her home now”, Yuuri said quietly, not lifting his gaze from the poodle. “I bet she misses it”.

“Yes, I suppose”, if Viktor was disappointed by the sudden hint at him taking his leave, he didn’t let it show. “And I guess you really need to get back to work”.

“I do actually”, Yuuri shot a swift glance past Viktor, at the clock above the door. “I hate to rush you out, but….”

“No worries”, Viktor said cheerfully rising from his chair. “I, too, need to be elsewhere. It was nice seeing you again.”

With a broad smile, he extended his hand, and Yuuri commanded himself not to freak out at the contact, at least visibly.

“Yeah, you too”.

“Thank you for the tea and for this little one here, of course”, he looked at Makkachin fondly who was watching the two men curiously, wagging her tail a little less excitedly than she would prefer due to the injuries.

“Of course”, Yuuri smiled warmly at the dog watching her follow her human to the door, then, timidly, shifted his gaze to the table, to Viktor’s hardly touched cup of tea, and, suddenly, jerked his head back up.

“Oh, but you didn’t have any chocolates!”, and then, upon meeting Viktor’s eyes, as if horrified by his own boldness, added quietly: “Seems like a shame, they are incredible”.

It took Viktor a couple of heartbeats to restrain himself from sliding to the floor and dying of Yuuri’s cuteness. Instead, he just grinned once more, and Yuuri noticed that this grin was different, not dazzling, but soft and somewhat mysterious, and something undecipherable was pooling in the blue eyes.

“Oh no, I’m good, thanks. They’re all yours”, he said and then, half turned toward the door, hand on the handle, added, corners of the mouth upturned: “I’ve had too many sweet things lately”.

 

***  
As Yuuri was watching Viktor and his mother exchanging their goodbyes, paired with compliments from his side and giggles from hers, he couldn’t help but roll his eyes, cracking a grin nevertheless. Seeing the two of them getting along was strangely satisfying. Although, Viktor could probably charm anyone and Mrs. Katsuki wasn’t exactly trying to resist it. Then Viktor’s eyes flickered to him, and Yuuri felt his stomach churn. With another dazzling smile and a wave, Viktor finally left the premises, Makkachin walking slowly next to him. Yuuri watched them coming up to an expensive-looking sleek black car, watched Viktor open the back door and carefully helping Makkachin inside, then shutting it and walking around to the door on the driver’s side. In several seconds they were gone. Yuuri wondered if that was the last he saw of his silver-haired dream. He still had his contact info though, but surely he would never dare bothering Viktor. What excuse would he have? His job was done, and there was no reason for the two of them see each other again. Even if, hypothetically, he did call him, what would Viktor say? He’d probably be upbeat and polite, as usual (usual? for heaven’s sake, it hasn’t been even 24 hours since you’ve met the guy, you don’t know him at all!). He’d probably ask how everything was going on with Yuuri, maintain small talk masterfully. Then wrap up the call, elegantly and with ease, as everything he did, hang-up and never pay a thought to Yuuri ever again, and all that Yuuri would be left with would bе Viktor’s number on the list of his outgoing calls, not even having a name to it. Yuuri didn’t need to name it because by then he already had it memorized.

“Are you okay, sweetie?”

His mother’s voice and a sudden change of language jerked him out of his wallowing.

“Huh? Oh, yes, I’m fine”.

He suddenly became aware that he was clutching something in his hand. 

“Oh, um, would you like some chocolates?”, he took the lid of the the elegant box and put the sweets onto the counter in front of Hiroko.

“Oh, thank you, Yuuri!”

She gasped eyeing the contents.

“Oh my, where did you get these from? They look so fancy”.

“Viktor just gave them to me, they are really good”.

“Good” was not the word with which you describe a catharsis-like experience, but it would suffice now.

“Ah, how lovely of him!” Hiroko clapped her hands. “Such a nice young man, this Mr. Nikiforov, I liked him at first sight”.

It took Yuuri a few seconds to process what she just said.

“Who?”

“Your handsome client, of course! He just signed the papers and I read his name”, she waived the said papers in the air cheerfully.

No. Way.

Very slowly, Yuuri extended his arm and took the copy of signed payment contract from his mother’s hand. There it was, looking at him from Last Name section, scribbled in a neat handwriting: Nikiforov. To the left of it stood: Viktor. Just as slowly he shifted his eyes to the box of chocolates he just passed to his mother, sitting on the counter beside her. The looping golden letters on the lid spelled the same last name with a flourish.

It would’ve been so easy to deem it a coincidence - how many Viktor Nikiforovs are there in the world? - and just toss the thought aside, but something was nagging at Yuuri’s mind. He dropped the papers on top of the counter and without a word, to the bewilderment of his mother, sprinted back to his office. He flung himself into the chair at the desk, opened browser on his computer and punched in the name of the confectionary company in question. Yuuri was astonished how, for the whole time he worshipped their chocolates, he never actually bothered with learning more about how the establishment had come to be and who had made it so. The first search result led him to the official web-page where, having scanned all the tabs at the top, he clicked on About Us. The article started with the company’s credo - “We do the opposite of what you expect from a sweet”, the source of their inspiration, the origins and the finest ingredients they use - all pretty standard. Then the company history followed that was quite short: it hadn’t been 4 years yet since Nikiforov’s first hit the market and boomed the country - and then the world - with their sweets. Finally, after Yuuri scrolled down a bit more, the title “Let Us Introduce Ourselves” popped up and directly under it he saw it. From a square photo, his dashing silver-haired client was smiling at him, head held high and tilted to the side, blue eyes set as if daring the camera to capture him. The words by the photo read: “Viktor Nikiforov, founder, CEO, chief chocolatier at Chicago’s brunch, author of the majority of existing company’s products”. 

Yuuri fought the urge to slide down against the counter and moan in despair.


End file.
